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Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Chemical Fertilizer Impedes Development of African Agriculture

Life has been a constant
struggle for African families since the collapse of colonialism in the
early 1980s. People living on this continent have had no choice but to
live a hard life in order to sustain themselves.
One of the major problems in Africa is the lack of existing industry
to engage the teeming youth in employment. Very few industries built by
the colonial masters have survived the test of time due to the fact that
the technologies and expertise required to manage such industries were
never transferred to local Africans, who were engaged to work in these
industrial set-ups.

Ghanaian official hands over donated fertilizer to farmers at Kpasenkpe. Photo by Npong FrancisClimate change
presents another challenge to the struggling continent whose people
have been living under a hornet’s nest of social, economic, and
political systems. These systems are a mixture of western and
conservative traditions, making these structures a most complex system
to live with.

The continent has been struggling over the years to cope with
changing times, conditions and ultimately the effect of climate change
on existing struggles which include poverty, food insecurity, unstable
economies, an unprecendentedly high rate of maternal and infants deaths,
malaria infections, malnutrition and under development.

Despite the crippling maladies, the continent is noted for the
largest farmlands in the world, and provide favourable conditions for
the growth of almost every single crop on earth. Yet in spite of this,
Africa faces severe food shortages and malnutrition – the cause of which
has been associated with floods, drought and heatwaves.
A community submerged in water during the Central Gonja flooding in northern Ghana. Photo by Npong Francis

The weather patterns have
also changed – rainfall has become erratic and unpredictable, and there
exists considerable weather predictions forecasting difficulties for
yielding crops. As a result, farmlands have been left to the mercy of
climate conditions which determines what can be produced and when. There
are also the considerably long droughts and thunderstorms which destroy
farms and crops in Africa.

One should not forget that man is equally liable to extinction, in
much the same way that the planet’s flora and fauna face challenges to
survive in a rapidly changing environment. The inability of 21st
century man to “think and act green” is leaving people with no option
but to pick up weapons to fight for and secure resources which will
support their livelihood.

There is evidence that Africa’s food is in short supply. Water
scarcity is also hitting a crisis level. The civil strikes taking place
on the continent today are directly linked to the mismanagement of
resources and the inability of African leaders to utilise existing
resources to meet the development needs of people.
It has become evident that developing agricultural potential in
Africa may be the solution to the challenges which face the deprived
continent.

The world food programme (WFP) report indicated that the
world’s food is in short supply, and this has begun to stir conflict
over land and other natural resources. Food donations to the WFP has
dwindled over the years which has prompted the UN body to pump billions
of dollars to purchase food supply to salvage communities facing crisis.
While food was in short supply, water scarcity across the globe has become eminent. In Sub-Saharan Africa
for example, conflicts over resources – particularly water and land are
begining to take shape, prompting people to look for weapons –
triggering an influx of light arms; as well as mass youth migration from
the rural communities to urban centers to search for non-existant
‘greener’ pastures. Youth migration is also notoriously associated with
the spread of HIV/AIDS, rape, teenage pregnancies, sexual transmitted
diseases (STDs), armed robbery, street-ism, drug abuse, indiscipline and
the creation of slums in cities.
Between the 17th and 20th Centuries, the
potency of Africa’s land to support the development of agriculture was
very high. Within the agricultural sector, both crops and animals were
doing well until chemical fertilizers were introduced onto African soil.
Now, chemical fertilizers and other agronomic chemicals have
contributed immensely to the food shortages in Africa. The use of
chemical fertilizers and agronomic chemicals have worsened agriculture
in Africa and made farmers more dependent.

During an exclusive interview with Mr. Abdul-Razak Sanni, an
Agriculture extension officer based in Northern Ghana, he had the
following to say: “Now if you apply one bag of fertilizer on a piece of
farmland this year, the next year the same quantity can not produce the
same result”. He said that fertilizers could increase farm yield,
however this makes farmers dependent on agro-chemicals
to be able to yield crops.
This he said negatively impacted farmers’
income levels in developing countries and contributed to soil fertility.

Irrespective of
the motivation behind US and European companies in introducing chemical
fertilizers and agro-chemicals to African farmers, the result has made
the already poverty stricken farmers dependant, instead of independant.